Who Should I Start? Kirk Cousins or Brett Rypien

Thursday, July 10, 1:51 PM

Atlanta Falcons quarterback Kirk Cousins said in an episode of the Netflix series "Quarterback" that he felt "a little bit misled" when the Falcons took Michael Penix Jr. at No. 8 overall in the 2024 NFL draft. It came just after Atlanta signed Cousins to a contract worth at least $100 million guaranteed to be their starter in 2024 and beyond. "I had no reason to leave Minnesota with how much we loved it there if both teams are going to be drafting a quarterback high," Cousins said. The 36-year-old led the team to a 6-3 start before injuring his right shoulder. After that, the Falcons lost four straight games, with Cousins throwing eight interceptions and no touchdowns in that stretch. He was eventually benched in Week 16 for Penix, who heads into 2025 as the unquestioned starter, with Cousins backing him up. Cousins could get traded during training camp, but for now he's useless in fantasy as a backup.

Thursday, August 29, 1:14 PM

The Minnesota Vikings signed veteran quarterback Brett Rypien on Thursday and waived Jaren Hall in a corresponding move. It's a mild surprise after Hall seemingly cemented the job as the QB3 behind starter Sam Darnold and backup Nick Mullens with a strong preseason. The 28-year-old Rypien was released earlier this week by the Chicago Bears. He spent the first four seasons of his career with the Denver Broncos, starting three games, before moving to the Los Angeles Rams last year. The Vikings were hit with tough news earlier in training camp with rookie first-rounder J.J. McCarthy (knee) having to miss all of his rookie season. In his four years in the NFL, Rypien has completed 58.3% of his 168 pass attempts for just 950 yards, four touchdowns and nine interceptions in 10 games (four starts).